Hey book lovers!
It’s that time again – I’m back with my monthly book recommendations! For those who missed my YouTube video, I’m sharing it below, but I also wanted to dive deeper into these books here on the blog. As you know, I’m a big believer in the power of a good book to transport us, challenge us, and sometimes completely wreck us emotionally (in the best way possible).
Between juggling work, life in NYC, and being a new mom, finding time to read has been challenging to say the least. But I still managed to get through these five books, and I’m excited to share my thoughts with you all!
Video Time!
Now let’s dive deeper into each recommendation…
1. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
I need to take a deep breath before talking about this one. This was my favorite book of 2022, hands down.
When I first heard about this book in spring 2022, I was honestly skeptical. The plot revolves heavily around video games, and as someone who grew up without game consoles (my sister and I shared a computer where we mostly played Roller Coaster Tycoon and The Sims), I wasn’t sure if I would connect with the story. This hesitation kept me from picking it up until our honeymoon/babymoon in fall 2022.
And wow, was I wrong to wait.
The book follows two main characters, Sadie and Sam, who meet as children under peculiar circumstances. Their friendship is complicated from the start—I wouldn’t even call them close friends initially. Years later, they reconnect as adults and decide to create a video game together. Both are creative programmers with big ideas, and they’re joined by a third character (Sam’s former college roommate) who balances their creative energy with pragmatic organizational skills.
What starts as a simple «let’s create a video game together» premise evolves into one of the most emotional journeys I’ve ever experienced in literature. By the middle of the book, I was completely hooked, and by the end, I was ugly crying (though being very pregnant at the time might have amplified those emotions).
The characters are so deeply developed, the writing is beautiful, and the emotional impact puts it right up there with my other all-time favorites: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (favorite of 2020) and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue (favorite of 2021).
Oh, and for those wondering about the title—it comes from a quote in Shakespeare’s Macbeth:
«Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day to the last syllable of recorded time, and all our yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!»
2. Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll
I picked up this book because I knew the Netflix adaptation was coming out, and I’m one of those people who needs to read the book before watching the movie. I finished it in about 2-3 days, right before the movie was released.
The story follows TifAni FaNelli (Ani), a polished woman with a seemingly perfect life—she’s about to marry a handsome, wealthy man and works at a prestigious magazine in New York. But there’s a stark contrast between her outward appearance and her inner voice, which is far from calm or content.
From the beginning of the book, you know something traumatic happened to her as a teenager, but you don’t know what exactly. As the story progresses, you discover it wasn’t just one thing but several horrible experiences that shaped her into the person she is today.
I appreciated how the book maintains this mystery until the end, slowly revealing cracks in her facade, whereas the movie gives away much more in the first few minutes.
Content warning: This book contains themes of violence and sexual abuse that may be difficult for some readers. If you do read and appreciate it, I recommend reading about the author afterward. Jessica Knoll revealed in an article published after the book’s release that she based many of the main character’s experiences on her own life. I’ll include a link to that article in the comments section of my video because it’s powerful to understand the real-life inspiration behind the story.
3. Friends Lie Here by Kimberly McCreight
This book was an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) sent to me by the publisher for review. I enjoyed it while reading, but I have to admit that several months later, the details have faded from my memory. I remember friends, some kind of murder mystery… and that’s about it.
And you know what? That’s okay! Not every book needs to be life-changing or permanently etched in your brain. Some books are just enjoyable while you’re reading them, and then they become another title on your «read» list for the year.
The story centers on six friends who know each other from college and reunite at a cabin upstate. One of them has a drug addiction, so it’s partly an intervention, but he’s not the only one with problems. All of them are hiding secrets from each other.
As the plot unfolds, people start getting killed, a detective appears, and there’s some mystery from many years ago that connects to the present. By the end, everything comes together satisfyingly.
It’s a perfect weekend read or beach book—light but engaging. It’s not necessarily funny (it is a murder mystery, after all), but it’s casual and accessible. I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys whodunits, mysteries, and stories about secrets coming to light.
4. Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
If you’ve been following my recommendations for a while, you know I’m a HUGE fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid. I truly admire her writing style and storytelling abilities. Writing novels like hers is a dream of mine that’s still pending!
For those familiar with her work, you know she’s created this interconnected world with characters like Evelyn Hugo (a movie star from the ’60s and ’70s), the band from Daisy Jones & The Six from around the same era, and the siblings in Malibu Rising who are children of a character from one of the other books.
Carrie Soto Is Back feels somewhat connected to this universe but stands more on its own. The main character, Carrie Soto, is a retired tennis player who holds the record for the most Grand Slam wins in women’s tennis. When a new player ties her record, Carrie decides to come out of retirement to win one more tournament and secure her legacy as the greatest of all time.
There are some parallels to Serena Williams’ life, with Carrie returning to her father (who was also her coach) to train her for this comeback. He’s partly convinced she can still be the best but also skeptical since she hasn’t played professionally in years.
I’ll be honest—this was my least favorite of Reid’s books (with Evelyn Hugo being my absolute favorite, followed by Daisy Jones, then Malibu Rising). There’s a lot of tennis terminology that I wasn’t familiar with, and I even had to Google some of it to understand what was happening.
Until about halfway through, I wasn’t sure if this book was for me, despite being such a big fan of the author. But there’s a twist near the end that brings an emotional depth to the story, particularly regarding the father-daughter relationship.
The father is originally from Argentina (representation! 🇦🇷), and Carrie’s actual name is Carolina. Overall, it’s a good book—not my favorite from this author, but still worth reading.
(Side note: Taylor Jenkins Reid, if you somehow come across this blog post, I would love for you to be my mentor or book friend! Just putting that out into the universe…)
5. The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose
I always try to be honest about what I read, even when I didn’t enjoy a book. This one falls into what I call the «hate-read» category—similar to how some people «hate-follow» others on social media. I kept reading, waiting for it to get good, have a great twist, or surprise me somehow… but that never happened.
By the time I finished, I really didn’t like it. But it was so highly recommended by others that I felt I needed to read it to be part of the conversation.
The main character, Sarah Morgan, is a successful lawyer at a prestigious firm in Washington, DC. One day, she receives a call from the police: her husband has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his mistress. So in one moment, she learns both that her husband was having an affair and that he’s being accused of murder.
For some inexplicable reason, she decides to be his defense lawyer because she «knows him better than anyone» and believes he’s innocent. That’s the premise of the book, which sounded promising but ultimately fell flat for me.
Maybe it’s just me, though! If you’ve read it, I’d love to know your thoughts on the ending.
What Are You Reading?
That wraps up my five book recommendations for this month! Have you read any of these books? What did you think? I’d love to know what you’re currently reading or what your favorite book of 2023 has been so far.
You can follow me on Goodreads to see what I’m reading. I’ll admit I’m behind on my reading challenge this year—turns out having a kid is really hard, and finding free time to read is a struggle! I’m hoping to get back on track with my goal of 24 books per year.
Until next time, happy reading!
xo, Flor
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